


Romeo and Juliet

by juggieheadcoopers



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-24
Updated: 2017-04-24
Packaged: 2018-10-23 06:16:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,881
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10713894
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/juggieheadcoopers/pseuds/juggieheadcoopers
Summary: Betty and the gang prepare to put on their school’s production of Romeo and Juliet





	Romeo and Juliet

“I need everyone to quiet down!”

The theatre director stood backstage in the middle of chaos - costume pieces flying every which way, scripts fluttering across the hardwood floor, actors and actresses practicing their lines in their not-so-inside voices.

“Reggie, stop putting the props in Chuck’s ear, what did I say after the last time?” She hurried over to the boys standing by the props table, her long hair whipping over her shoulder as she frantically ripped the tiny object out of Reggie’s hand. 

“I can’t believe we’re being forced to perform such an archaic piece of literary garbage. It’s so outdated,” Veronica whined, tossing her script onto a folding chair by the side of the stage. “I mean what teenager nowadays would climb up to someone’s window as a way of declaring one’s affections for them?”

Betty’s eyes went wide as she glanced at Jughead, her heart beating rapidly in her chest.

“No one,” Betty said almost too quickly, fiddling with a fraying piece of fabric on her costume and avoiding Veronica’s gaze. 

“Exactly, B, glad to see you’re on my side on this one,” Veronica beamed at Betty before pulling on the arm of her dress and frowning. “Although, the fact that you’re our Juliet isn’t really helping the cause.”

Jughead gently pulled Betty away from Veronica, leaning in close to her ear so no one else could hear them.

“Bets, are we ever going to talk about it?” Jughead whispered. “It’s been weeks.” 

“Talk about what?” Betty feigned confusion as she turned away from him to busily flip through her script. 

“You know what,” Jughead muttered, lowering his gaze to give her a knowing look.

“Alright, that’s enough!” The director’s voice rose above the chatter, signaling to to the group that it was time to meet with her in the center of the stage. “Gather around everyone, we don’t have a lot of time!”

“You said to pretend like nothing happened,” Betty reminded Jughead, looking back at him struggling to keep of with her as she hurried to join the rest of the group. “So that’s exactly what I’m doing.”

“I didn’t mean-”

“Jughead, honestly, the faster you’re done wasting my time, the faster I can be done wasting yours,” the director sighed, turning to the students staring at her with bored expressions and taking an annoyed breath. “As you all know, our first performance of Romeo and Juliet is tomorrow. You all have put a lot of work into this and I expect that you will treat the performance with as much respect as it deserves. In other words, if you make a mockery of this program, I will see you in detention for an entire month - I’m looking at you Reggie. Okay, let’s get this over with!” 

“Betty, I didn’t mean for us to skirt around each other like we were never even friends,” Jughead explained, taking her by the elbow and spinning her around slightly to meet his gaze. “I miss talking to you.” 

“I miss you too, Juggie,” Betty admitted, her lips twitching into a faint smile as she allowed herself get lost in his eyes for a moment. 

“Juliet, wherefore art thou Romeo? I know that’s not what that really means, but- oh never mind,” the director stammered, but stopped abruptly when she realized a dozen eyes were staring at her like she was crazy. “Seriously, Betty, where is he?” 

“I’m here, Ms. Machin!”

As if on cue, Archie Andrews burst through the stage door to join the rest of his classmates on the stage.

“Sorry, I had music rehearsal with the pussycats and-” Archie struggled to catch his breath as he quickly tried to explain himself, but was cut off by an aggravated Ms. Machin shoving his costume in his face. 

“Oh, I’m so glad you’ve put so much time and effort into other activities, Archie, but we have a performance tomorrow,” Ms. Machin reminded him. “So can we please run through this play before I start ripping my hair out of my head?” 

“Yikes,” Veronica winced. “Sounds like someone needs a good long bath and a bottle of merlot after this horrid play is over and done with. And I don’t just mean me.” 

“So are we okay?” Jughead asked, turning to Betty as she watched the group disperse in front of her. “You and me?”

“That depends,” Betty shrugged. “What did the kiss mean?” 

“Bets, why do we have to decide that right now, I don’t-”

Rolling her eyes, Betty turned away from Jughead, already tired of hearing this answer, and made her way across the stage to look up at Archie putting one arm through the jacket that accompanied his costume.

“Arch, can we go over the blocking for our last scene together one more time?” Betty asked. “I just want to be sure I have it down perfectly.”

“Yeah, let’s do it,” Archie agreed, tugging on the hem of his jacket and smiling down at her as they headed off to a quieter location to practice. 

“Okay, what is going on with you two?” Veronica emerged from somewhere behind Jughead, gesturing towards Betty with a raised eyebrow. “You’ve been dodging each other for weeks. Seriously I watched Betty dive into the girl’s bathroom just to avoid running into you last week. Something happened between you two didn’t it?” 

“I don’t know,” Jughead muttered, rubbing the back of his neck uncomfortably and staring at a spot in the hardwood floor. “Maybe.”

“Oh my god, I knew it!” Veronica exclaimed, her face brightening at the thought of an unexpected romance. “But wait, then what’s the problem?” 

“A few weeks ago, we kind of had…” Jughead fidgeted in his spot, lowering his voice so he couldn’t be heard by any unsuspecting ears. “A moment.”

“Meaning?”

“We kissed,” Jughead admitted. “And afterwards I kind of… freaked out.”

“Like you ran screaming in the other direction like a five-year-old afraid of those people in the creepy character costumes at an amusement park?” Veronica asked, her brows drawing together as she tried to comprehend what he was saying. 

“No,” Jughead sighed. “I just - I panicked and didn’t think she wanted it to happen. I mean, it was kind of out of the blue. But then again, it really wasn’t. Anyway, I told her just to pretend like it didn’t happen and now…”

“Now she’s treating you like you’re a piece of gum on the bottom of her shoe,” Veronica finished for him, nodding as if she understood exactly what he was talking about. “I mean you try to ignore it, but it keeps making itself known every time you walk and it sticks to the floor.” 

“Kinda harsh,” Jughead scoffed. “But essentially - yes.” 

“Well lucky for you, Ronnie knows how to fix even the direst dating woe,” Veronica assured him, her lips curling into a devilish smirk. “And believe it or not, this situation is not that dire. Here’s what you need to do - you need to show her that you really do want to be with her. Make some grand gesture, do whatever it takes to get her to believe you.”

“Well, how do I do that?”

“That part’s up to you my friend,” Veronica told him, placing a reassuring hand on his shoulder as she turned to Archie and Betty at the other end of the stage. “But if I were you, I’d do it soon. Her Romeo is literally her dream Romeo, so I’d act fast.” 

With that, Veronica crossed the stage to talk to a few of the girls in charge of the set decoration, leaving Jughead to watch as Betty laughed at something Archie was saying from across the stage.

“But he’s not,” Jughead muttered to himself, thinking back to the day he crawled into her room and kissed her like it was the most natural thing in the world. 

“Okay, let’s run through the balcony scene before we do a complete run-through!” Ms. Machin directed the group, gesturing for everyone to get into places with frantic hands. “Let’s go, people, the clock is ticking!”

“Okay, Juggie, it’s now or never,” Jughead whispered under his breath. “You might not be her Romeo in the play, but you were her Romeo when you climbed through her window the other day.”

“Alright, Act 2, Scene 2,” Ms. Machin clapped her hands together as the actors began to file into their positions. “Juliet appears on the balcony above, Romeo is below when he spots her and-”

Archie stepped onto the stage, glancing up at Betty with a look of longing as he began to deliver his lines.

“But soft! What light through yonder window breaks? It is the-”

Jughead couldn’t wait anymore. Before he could talk himself out of it, he hopped out from behind the lighting booth and made his way onto the stage.

“It is the east and Juliet is the sun,” Jughead finished the line for Archie, causing dozens of eyes to look to him with curious -yet intrigued- expressions. 

“Jughead Jones, I will not have you make a mockery of-” Ms. Machin’s face was beet red from anger, but Veronica stepped behind her to place a gentle hand on her shoulder. 

“Let him finish!” Veronica insisted, nodding for Jughead to finish the line as he stood in front of the balcony, looking up at Betty. 

“Arise fair sun and kill the envious moon, who is already sick and pale with grief, that thou fair maid art far more fair than she,” Jughead continued, meeting Betty’s gaze with a look of regret and sorrow. “I messed up Bets. I should have told you how I felt about you a long time ago, but I was scared. I wasn’t sure if you felt the same way so I kind of - freaked out.” 

“Juggie, all you had to do was talk to me,” Betty told him, taking a step closer to the edge of the balcony and leaning over it to smile down at him. “You can talk to me about anything.”

“I know,” Jughead met her smile before turning to everyone watching them and taking a deep breath. “So I’m asking you this now, in front of our entire class - will you go out with me?” 

“Of course I will,” Betty answered, and a roar of cheers coming from the cast made an embarrassed giggle escape her lips. 

Before anyone could protest, Jughead started climbing up the ladder meant to look like vines crawling up the side of the building and hoisted himself up and over the balcony to join Betty.

“Mr. Jones, that set it to be handled with care don’t you-” Ms. Machin yelled from the stage, but Jughead was already up and over before she could finish her sentence. 

“Now, that’s the kind of play I would be excited about performing,” Veronica muttered to herself, clapping her hands together happily as she watched her friends smile at one another with goofy grins. 

“Feel familiar?” Jughead asked as they stood in front of the hand-built window, his hands on her waist as she took a step closer to him. 

“No yet,” Betty breathed before closing the space between them and placing her hands on his cheeks, their lips meeting with a kiss that was even better than their first.


End file.
